How to install and run the script

Update your environment on Linux:

sudo apt-get install libxml2-dev git-all

sudo perl -MCPAN -e shell

install XML::LibXML

exit

Update your environment on Windows:

Install: Perl from ActiveState

Run: Perl Package Manager Search and install: XML-LibXML

Get Primer3Docs:

git clone https://github.com/primer3-org/primer3docs.git primer3docs

cd primer3docs

Run the script:

./create_tag_files_and_docs.pl

Guide to use Primer3 docs

The motivation to start this documentation script originated from the need to keep the readme files in Primer3 and the helpfiles in Primer3Web and Primer3Plus in sync. With Primer3 getting more input tags this also helps to keep the overview.

It works rather simple. All information is stored in XML files. Then a script is run which generates the html and txt files from it. This end up in the folder script_output. Old and tested documents are in reference_docs. Compare your new output to them to avoid loosing information or other unwanted effects.

Of course there would be better ways, but I (A. Untergasser) know perl and wanted fast results. That does of course not mean we should keep it like that for ever.

There are three xml files:

primer3_command_line.xml A list of all possible command line flags. New flags are automatically added to all generated files.

primer3_tag_definitions.xml A list of all possible input tags. New tags are automatically added to all generated files.

primer3_output_tags.xml A list of all possible output tags. New tags are automatically added to all generated files.

primer3_textblocks.xml A alphabetical list of textblocks. The script reads them in and puts them into order. New textblocks needed to be added to the @textblocksOrder array to be addet to the generated files.

In the field of the tags and the field of the textblocks the following html-like elements are allowed. The script will remove them for the txt files and modify them for html files:

<p3_version /> will be replaced by the version, for example 1.1.4 <p3_year /> will be replaced by the years, for example: 1996,1997,1998,1999,2000,2001,2004,2006,2007,2008
a html newline, it will be removed in txt files (not replaced by a \n) ..... Will be turned into a link to the anchor. All tag descriptions Are automatically anchors. Like that it will link to its description (or be removed in txt files).

webpage.htm Will be turned into a www-link to webpage.htm (or be plain text in txt files).